By Nivedita Bhattacharjee
BENGALURU (Reuters) – India’s space agency completed final preparations on Friday for the launch of a rocket that will attempt to land a robotic rover on the moon’s south pole, a first in space exploration.
India would join a group of three other countries that have managed a controlled lunar landing, including the United States, the former Soviet Union and China, if the mission is successful.
The Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft would also be the first to land at the lunar south pole, an area of particular interest to space agencies and private space companies due to the presence of water ice that could support a future space station.
The rocket is expected to lift off from India’s main spaceport in the southern state of Andhra Pradesh at 2:35 p.m. (0905 GMT).
The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) said it had completed a mission readiness review ahead of the scheduled launch on Friday.
Several ISRO scientists were shown in footage from India’s ANI news agency carrying a portable model of the Chandrayaan-3 to a popular temple in southern India on Thursday to seek blessings ahead of launch.
ISRO’s Chandrayaan-2 mission in 2020 successfully deployed an orbiter, but its lander and rover were destroyed in an accident near where the Chandrayan-3 will attempt a touchdown.
Chandrayaan, which means “lunar vehicle” in Sanskrit, includes a 2-meter (6.6-foot) tall lander designed to deploy a rover near the lunar south pole, where it is expected to remain functional for two weeks to conduct a series of experiences.
The launch is India’s first major mission since Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government announced policies to boost investment in space launches and satellite-related activities.
Since 2020, when India opened up to private launches, the number of space startups has more than doubled. Late last year, Skyroot Aerospace, whose investors include Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund GIC, launched India’s first privately-built rocket.
“Join a billion Indians in wishing good luck to the #Chandrayaan3 mission!” Skyroot co-founder Pawan Chandana said in a tweet.
(Reporting by Nivedita Bhattacharjee in Bengaluru; Editing by Jamie Freed)